Bag Up Some Tomatoes

Tomatoes grow very successfully in grow bags in a greenhouse or outdoors. Crops can be improved by inserting bottomless pots full of soil into the grow bag to increase the volume for better root growth.

Prepare a Grow Bag for Tomato Plants

Plant Into the Pots

Plant one tomato per pot at the same level as it was growing in its container. Plant straggly plants a little deeper. This encourages new roots to form along the buried stem, helping stabilize the plants.

Re-Potting Tomato Plants

Pinch Out Sideshoots

As the plants grow, small sideshoots appear off the main stem. These should be removed as soon as possible because they will take energy away from the ripening fruits. When they are small, simply pinch them out with your fingers.

Staking Tomato Plants Strengthens Stems

Nip Out the Top

You can help the plant put all its energy into ripening the fruits by preventing it from putting on too much growth. After outdoor plants have set four trusses of fruits, and greenhouse plants six, nip out the top shoot with your fingers.

Trim the Top of Tomato Plant

Fruiting and Harvesting

Tomatoes are best when picked fully ripe, but you are likely to have some green tomatoes at the end of the season. Cutting back on watering can help shock the plant into ripening the fruits. If it is getting cold and your tomatoes must be harvested, pull up the whole plant and hang it by its roots somewhere cool and dark to finish ripening.

Harvesting Ripe and Green Tomatoes

Vine Ripened Tomatoes Provide Delicious Beauty

Tip: Careful Watering

Cracks can appear in the skin just as fruits are ripening. The problem is due to changes in growth rate, caused by fluctuating temperatures and erratic watering; as growth slows during a cool, dry period, skins harden and do not have the elasticity to cope if growth later picks up and fruits swell. It is a particular problem in soft-grown plants: those that have been fed too much nitrogen. While you cannot control temperatures, you can make sure watering is regular, and that you provide the correct feeding regime. Make provisions for watering if you go away, even for a few days, and feed weekly with a specially formulated tomato feed, one rich in flower-and fruit-promoting potassium.

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